Archive for September, 2009
AntiquesAvenue forum
Posted by: | CommentsAntiquesAvenue now has a forumwhere you can discuss antiques, vintage and collectable items. Please do drop by, sign up ( just a name and e.mail address required) and if you like add a note to introduce yourself.
I’ve set this up due to the overwhelming number of comments on the thread on the rivalry between antiuqes fairs in Newark, Swinderby and Lincoln . You can start a new thread or ask questions. I will be checking in regularly myself
How to buy vintage jewellery, ten tips
Posted by: | CommentsBuying Vintage Jewellery for a gift this coming Christmas or to wear during the party season is a sure way to be unique and individual. Not only will you be getting something which it is highly unlikely anyone else has but you will also be very stylish.
But buying vintage jewellery is not always easy. Do you know the difference between a genuine vintage ring and a new copy made in china this year? Here are ten tops from Anne at AntiquesAvenue to help you buy an original vintage piece on-line.
vintage brooch
1. Find a reputable dealer
Ok, you may think that I would suggest that you find a vintage jewellery dealer rather than simply looking on eBay for a piece of vintage jewellery. Here are my reasons, it is difficult to tell a genuine piece of vintage jewellery from new. There are lots of people on eBay selling jewllery they claim to be vintage when it is in fact simply second hand or new and has been made in a vintage style. Buying those pieces is fine if you want something new or a couple of years old but not if you want a piece with genuine history and vintage quality.
How do you find a reputable vintage jewellery dealer? Well take a look around the Internet. Like AntiquesAvenue a dealer with lots of vintage pieces will be prepared to help you in your selection. Does the website state that the items are genuine vintage?
2. Read the description
Does the piece of vintage jewellery you are looking at say how old the piece is? Or does it just say “Vintage style”, “Vintage inspired” or has it been remade and include vintage pieces? If in doubt ask. Also look in the description for size information and condition ( see further down the page for more about these). Look at the pictures. If you are not sure then start asking questions.
3. Ask Questions
Once you have seen a piece of vintage jewellery you like the look of ask questions if these are not already in the description. You need to know:
Is this a genuine vintage brooch, what size is this vintage ring or how long is this vintage necklace?
How old is this pair of art deco earrings? Remember if it is not circa 1920s to 1940 it is not going to be real vintage art deco.
What condition is this piece in (see further down)
vintage pin
4. What makers marks or Hallmarks are on the piece?
Makers marks and hallmarks can help assure you that your piece of jewellery is genuine however many older pieces have few identifying marks. Even gold or silver from the Victorian era or the early 1900s does not need to be fully hallmarked to be real.
5. Is there more than one available?
One of the big selling points for vintage jewellery is that each piece is relatively rare and compared to new you are far less likely to see someone else wearing the same item. It is rare but not impossible for a dealer to have more than one of any given piece of jewellery. Ask the dealer. If they have more than one of most items then they are not going to be genuine vintage. Over at AntiquesAvenue I only have 2 of any item when I have bought new vintage stock from an old shop which has shut down ( the Wedgwood jasper jewellery for example)
6. Does it look new?
If the piece of jewellery you are looking at is bright and shiny and looks new it probably is . Gold jewellery is an exception to this as it does not show age in the same way as other metals. Silver can be brought back to its original colour by dipping it but most vintage dealers would not do this in order to retain the vintage patina.
7. Check the sizing
Brooches are often the best piece of vintage jewellery to give as a gift as the sizing is less important than with a ring or the length of a necklace. Even with a brooch you do not want one which is 7 cms long to do on a delicate piec eof material nor do you want a brooch measuring 1.5 cms long to go on a chunky coat or cardigan as it will look lost.
8. Check the condition
Much vintage jewellery has not survived well. Hopefully you will find a statement about the condition of the vintage jewellery on a website. AntiquesAvenue states that all items are in excellent vintage condition unless there is something specific written about signs of ageing or an issue with the piece. Some slight wear is to be expected and is acceptable on vintage jewellery , hopefully this is confined to very light touches which show as age rather than damage or missing stones
9. Learn about vintage Jewellery
Here on AntiquesAvenue blog there is lots of information about vintage jewellery and how to learn more about it. Use this an other websites and books to learn what to look for in detail. You too can find out how to date a piece of vintage jewellery by looking at it.
10. Ask how your jewellery will be posted
Once you have chosen and paid for your piece of jewellery you want to be sure that it arrives safely. All AntiquesAvenue jewellery is posted in a box and by secure post. Please do check that the piece you are to be sent will travel is a box as otherwise pin and clips can get damaged. The posts from earrings can bend if they are just put in bubble wrap, a bracelet can be crushed unless it is boxed.
AntiquesAvenue is specialising in genuine vintage and antique jewellery. Please select from the links on the left of this page to buy vintage jewellery which you can be sure is original.
Antiques Discussion Forum?
Posted by: | CommentsFollowing the unprecedented level of discussions taking place on my post about the Newark / Swinderby / Lincoln antiques fairs, I am considering setting up a discussion forum here on antiquesavenue blog. As this will take some effort from myself I do need to find out if there is a demand for a place for the antiques trade and collectors to chat. I envisage:
- A threaded discussion forum
- Free of charge and available to anyone to register
- A limited amount of self promotion ( say one link per post)
- Discussions limited to all aspects of antiques, vintage and collecting including the trade, fairs, news and objects.
Please either get in touch directly or leave a comment on this post if you see this as a facility you would wish to participate in
Anne
AntiquesAvenue Vintage Jewellery & News update
Posted by: | CommentsVintage Jewellery update and AntiquesAvenue news September 24th
Its been a busy month here at AntiquesAvenue. Firstly I have added loads of fresh stock to my vintage jewellery shop and in particular a great selection of vintage brooches and antique brooches.
Have you seen the new “live Help” chat button on www.antiquesavenue.co.uk ? Despite the picture showing a lady with a phone headset this is actually a text chat feature. Press the button when I am showing as on line and we can exchange messages, Hang about in the shop for a while and I might just invite you to a conversation.
Antique Brooch
On www.antiquesavenue.com antiques blog the thread about the war between the Newark antique fair and A.Swallow formerly of Swinderby and now organising a fair at Lincoln is hotting up. There have been nearly 50 comments as I write this with more coming in daily.
Have you seen the two videos I have made this month? This is my first venture into making videos an they show about dating brooches from the findings on the back. I am considering more videos for the coming months as they seem to be well received. Feedback on these is appreciated.
A little request from me; If you want to send me a question about a piece you own please do be prepared to send a photo ( .jpg format) as I cant tell about a piece without seeing at least one clear photo. Sorry but I still do not do free valuations.
Coming over the next couple of weeks : More vintage jewellery including some lovely Scandinavian silver pieces and wonderful vintage art deco glass necklaces.
Vintage Jewellery video part 2 now available
Posted by: | CommentsI’ve made a second Vintage Jewellery video, this one takes another look at the back of brooches and shows a clue to telling the difference between a Victorian or 20th century brooch. This vintage jewellery video is currently viewable from the home page of my shop : www.antiquesavenue.co.uk
This is best viewed as supplemental information to my original vintage jewellery video which you can see here:
Antiques Auctions catalogue review
Posted by: | CommentsTwo glossy auction catalogues plopped through my letter box this morning. Full colour glossy things for the sort of fine art auction I dont normally bother with ( not much chance of a real bargain here). These have been sent to me by midlands auctioneers in hopes of tempting me to their sales ( not much chance of that either ).
Why dont Gildings and Lock & England just e.mail me with a link to their on-line catalogues? I will take a look if I am interested and it will save you the cost of printing and posting and me the trouble of recycling your publicity.
Anyway, despite my concern over the environmental waste to these glossies I did take a look and found one or two pretties I would buy for myself for keeps if only funds permitted. What would I like? Well Gildings ( Market Harborough)are offering two wonderful seventeenth century carved wooden angels each about 12 inches high. The catalogue estimate (lot 268) are £100 to £150 but I think that is just to draw us in. Have you seen these beautiful ladies. OK, just for fun I may leave a bid of double their top estimate but there is no way they are going to sell at that lowly price.
Lot 72 is a Minton owl teapot dating from 1884 and glazed in a mustard yellow majolica colour, this could have a home my art pottery owl collection Estimated £200 to £300 well not this month I need to buy more stock. The Gildings auction is on September 29 only one day after my birthday so those angels may yet come home with me should my relatives be unusually generous this year.
Lock and England in leamington spa have the usual selection of brown furniture , silver tableware and miscellaneous painting. I did spot a few piece of Newlyn copper on page 42 and for Victorian dump enthusiasts a rare dump with an internal sulphide in the shape of a dog ( est £80 to £120). This aucion is on September 24th
Any one attending either of these aucitons? If so do drop in a comment and let us know how these particular items went,
A Vintage Brooch, the perfect gift
Posted by: | CommentsAntiquesAvenue loves all Vintage Jewellery including Vintage Brooches and Antique Brooches too . Brooches come in all shapes and sizes and are made of a wide range of materials and Vintage brooches have changed throughout the last 200 years. This article looks at Vintage Brooches from the 20th Century and the differences throughout that time.
What type of vintage brooch was popular when?
The art deco era - the roaring ’20s saw all things bright and bold in fashion and brooches were no exception. At the top end large diamonds, emeralds and rubies set into white gold reflecting the colours of the time. These brooches would be angular and geometric in shape. The 1920s also had a phase of oriental and Egyptian style: oriental fans, Egyptian scarabs, exotic dancers were all brought to life in brooches. Bakelite brooches from the 1920s are very sought after
art deco brooch
The 1930s had a more English country garden feel – think crinoline lady designs and chintzy patterns. Vintage flower brooches suited the 1930s fashion, the colours were softer and more muted than in the 1920s.
The 1940s was the cocktail era for brooches – big and bold with lots of metal. These brooches whilst large were often made of quite thin metals as materials were scarce. This means that although the brooches from the 1940s are large they are not too heavy to wear. The ballet was a popular theme in brooches and flowers remain popular too. Look out for lucite brooches these are becoming increasingly collectable and can still be found at a reasonable price.
The 1950s broght us space age in design and star burst and comet brooches followed the general trend. New innovations such as the aurora borealis stone were rapidly adopted for costume jewellery and were at their boldest in brooches. Look out for cute poodle brooches.
1950s brooch
Similarly brooches from the 1960s and 1970s reflected the trands and fashions of the time.
So as you can see there really is a huge variery of vintage brooches to select from – perhaps more than any other form of jewellery.
Vintage Brooches are super to wear and to give as gifts, perhpas easier to give than other forms of vintage jewellery as the size does not have to be as accurate as say a ring or bracelet. There really is the widest range available many of these brooches appear as miniature works of art in there own right and as such also make a great collection. The brooches available from www.AntiquesAvenue.co.uk in the Vintage Brooches section are from circa 1920 to circa 1970s but you will find an exceptional newer brooch appearing from time to time.
This article was originally published on antiquesavenue.co.uk to help customers select the right vintage brooch as a gift.
September Birthstone Jewellery, Sapphires
Posted by: | CommentsBirthstone Jewellery always makes a popualr present. If you know someone with a September Birthday the stone to buy is the blue Sapphire set into a piece of vintage jewellery. Remember if you buy a piece of sapphire set vintage jewellery it is the most unique gift as you rarely ever find two piece of vintage jewellery the same.
The Sapphire is the official birthstone for the month of September as adopted by the American National Association of Jewelers in 1912. It is also one of the birth stones for the Zodiac signs of Pisces, Taurus, Virgo and Sagittarius.
Sapphire earrings
Sapphire is the non-red variety of corundum class of gemstone (the red variety of corundum is ruby). A 9.0 on the Mohs scale of hardness, sapphire is the second hardest natural mineral. Only diamond is harder, thus making sapphire a very wearable stone.
Sapphires with inclusions of tiny, rutile needles exhibit an optical property called asterism. This is the star shaped effect seen in star sapphires and is usually only seen in cabochon cuts.
Star sapphires usually have six ray stars, but twelve ray stars are also known. Rarely, when sapphires are cut en cabochon, they can demonstrate a cat’s eye effect. This effect displays a thin band of light down the center of the stone and is known as chatoyancy.
Sources: India, Burma, Ceylon, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia, Brazil and Africa.
sapphire ring
Hardness & Toughness: Sapphire’s hardness is exceeded only by that of diamond – and the diamond is the hardest mineral on Earth! Thanks to that hardness, and excellent toughness, sapphires are easy to look after, requiring no more than the usual care on the part of the wearer. Care and Cleaning: Warm soapy water is usually considered best, but the ultra-sonic and steam-cleaner are generally considered to be safe.
AntiquesAvenue shop always has a nice selection of Sapphire Vintage Jewellery for you to buy for that September present and if you dont know anyone else I would like a large Sapphire for my birthday later this month ( hint, hint) 